U.S Pat. No. 4,062,385, issued Dec. 13, 1977 to Katusha et al, shows a toner container with a broad flange at the bottom around an opening through which toner can be emptied. A cover for the container is slidably retained against the flange so that it can be moved between positions covering the opening and uncovering the opening. The container is usable with appropriate receiving apparatus on a copier. It is placed on a slide structure next to a toner sump cavity on the receiving apparatus. As the container is slid over the sump cavity the cover is retained on the slide by suitable detent means between the cover and the slide and sump. When the container is empty and to be removed it is slid back onto the cover so that it may be removed and disposed of without dirtying the operator or the apparatus.
This structure has been used extensively commercially and has successfully accomplished its mission of supplying toner in a clean environment. However, the slide and cover protrude substantially from the sump. To prevent the slide from interfering with the front door of the apparatus, the commercial use of this structure positions the slide parallel to the door, so that the container's movement is substantially parallel to that front door of the apparatus. This requires substantial room on one side of the receiving apparatus in the copier, which in fact has been available.
It would be desirable to use this toner container cover removing system in newer apparatus having a number of development stations, for example, apparatus capable of making multicolored reproductions. Unfortunately, such apparatus receives several, for example, as many as four, toner containers, one next to the other. Thus, the adjacent toner containers do not permit placement of the slide parallel to the front door and movement of the toner container off its cover in a direction parallel to the front door.